Machine for sequentially printing on flat surfaces



1.. .1. KESSLER ET AL 3,382,797

6 Sheets-Sheet 1 MACHINE FOR SEQUENTIALLY PRINTING ON FLAT SURFACES N m\m May 14, 1968 Filed Aug. ll,

ATTORNEYS y 1968 L. J. KESSLER ET AL 3,382,797

OR SEQUENTIALLY PRINTING ON FLAT SURFACES Filed Aug. 11, 1966 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 11M, 3%, 44% gm ATTORNEY y 1968 L. J. KESSLER ET AL 3,382,797

MACHINE FOR SEQUENTIALLY PRINTING ON FLAT SURFACES Filed Aug. ll, 1966 6 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTORE A 00/5 J. KJsL 52 J34 a a5 4 5554 E2.

ATTORNEYS May 14, 1968 L, J. KESSLER ET AL 3,382,797

MACHINE FOR SEQUENTIALLY PRINTING ON FLAT SURFACES Filed Aug. 11, 1966 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR5 0075 I keassuae J4me (655L512 yaw ATTORNEYS May 14, 1968 L. J. KESSLER ET AL 3,382,797

MACHINE FOR SEQUEN'IIALLY PRINTING 0N FLAT SURFACES Filed Aug. 11, 1966 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR5 400/5 J." 55:45.2 JWCOZ? Kass; 5Q

Ala

ATTORNEYS May 14, 1968 J KESSLER ET AL 3,382,797

MACHINE FOR SEQUENTIALLY PRINTING ON FLAT SURFACES Filed Aug. 11, 1966 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 INVENTORS 1400/5 J7 KjSAEZ J34 (05 4 655 52 BY a I a; PA

ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,382,797 MACHINE FOR SEQUENTIALLY PRINTING 0N FLAT SURFACES Louis J. Kessler, Sands Point, and Jacob Kesser, Bayside,

N.Y., assignors to Industrial Marking Equipment Company, Inc., Albertson, N.Y., a corporation of New York Filed Aug. 11, 1966, Ser. No. 571,783 1 Claim. (Cl. 101-479) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLGSURE A printing device for sequentially printingindicia on the surface of items of various thicknesses and configurations in which a conveyor system receives the items from a hopper by gravity feed and moves the items sequentially to a printing roll, said printing roll and said conveyor being powered by the same source and blocks are provided for modifying the horizontal projection of the hopper surface adjacent said items, means are provided for adjusting the height of the hopper above the conveyor, and means are provided for adjusting the printing roll above the conveyor whereby the several elements can be readily adjusted to enable imprinting of items of various thicknesses and configurations.

The invention is described herein in terms of a machine for printing on the soles of footwear and is frequently re ferred to as a sole printing machine. However, it should be understood that the teachings of this invention and the specific embodiment disclosed herein can be utilized for printing on other objects having flat surfaces.

It is a principal object of this invention to provide a high speed, high volume, continuously operating machine capable of printing on sequentially delivered footwear soles.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a sole printing machine having a minimum of moving parts and which is substantially fault free and requiring a minimum of maintenance.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a positive feed sole printing machine allowing for substantially perfect registration and one which allows for simple and quick changing of the indicia to be printed upon the soles.

A sole printing machine constructed in accordance with the teachings of this invention, and the method of using the same, will now be described with references to the drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of a sole printing machine constructed in accordance with the teachings of this invention;

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the printing machine shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the drive system utilized in the machine shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged plan view of the adjustable upright hopper utilized for sole feed in the machine shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is .a vertical longitudinal section taken along the line 5-5 in the direction of the arrows in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a vertical transverse section taken along the line 66 in the direction of the arrows in FIG. 5; and

FIG. 7 is a partially sectional view taken along the line 7--7 in the direction of the arrows in FIG. 2.

The printing machine which is the subject of this invention includes a feed hopper 20 which is open at the top for receipt therein of a plurality of stacked objects to be printed upon, such as soles 21, which are gravity fed sequentially to stationary table 22 and moved thereon in the direction of the arrow A in FIG. 2 by feed push- 3,332,797 Patented May 14, 1968 ice ers 23 to printing unit 24 where the imprint of indicia is accomplished. The hopper 20 is fed either manually or automatically by equipment not shown herein and means also not shown are provided for removing the soles from the table 22 after printing.

The hopper 20 which is shown in some detail in FIGS. 4, 5 and 6, includes hopper side supports 25 and 26 which are vertically disposed and adjustably fastened, as will be considered below, at their lower ends to main frame sides 27 and 28 respectively. Each of the hopper side supports is built-up from two spaced vertical channels, an inside brace and a sheet metal covering which is turned inwardly at its upper and side edges. Hence hopper side support 25 is built-up from spaced vertical channels 29 and 30, inside brace 31 and the sheet metal covering which is indicated generally in the figures by the numeral 25 and hopper side support 26 is built-up from vertical channels 32 and 33, brace 34 and a sheet metal covering indicated in the figures generally by the numeral 26. Outside brace members 35 and 36 extend transversely and further support the hopper side supports 25 and 26 to which they are attached by suitable means.

The hopper side supports 25 and 26 in turn support four guide rods indicated in the figures by the numerals 37, 38, 39 and 40. These guide rods are supported transversely with each having an end journaled in .a respective channel member 29, 30, 32 or 33. As seen in FIG. 5, rod 37 is supported above rod 39 in the same vertical plane and rod 38 is supported above rod in the same vertical plane. Rods 37 and 38 are supported in the same horizontal plane and rods 39 and 40 are supported in the same horizontal plane.

Rods 38 and 40 support four identical adjusting blocks each of which is movable longitudinally on its respective support rod. Blocks 41 and 42 are supported by rod 38 and blocks 43 and 44 are supported by rod 40. Each of the blocks can be fastened into position by a respective adjusting screw 41', 42, 4-3, or 44' within a respective threaded insert in the block 41", 42", 43" or 44".

Blocks 42 and 44 provide a pair which supports vertical post 45 having a formed surface 45'. The cross sectional configuration of post 45 in the horizontal plane can be seen best in FIG. 4. Likewise blocks 41 and 43 support vertical post 46 having a formed surface 46. The cross sectional configuration of post 46 can be seen best in FIG. 4 also. Posts 45 and 46 are adjustable transversely of the unit, as shown by the arrows in FIG. 4 by means of the adjusting blocks which mount these posts.

As seen in FIG. 5, rods 37 and 39 support an elongated vertically disposed adjusting block 47 which can be moved longitudinally of rods 37 and 39 and maintained in position by adjusting screw 48 within threaded insert 48. A substantially identical elongated adjusting block 49 is supported by rods 37 and 39 in spaced relation with block 47 and this block 49 is also adjustable longitudinally of the support rods 37 and 39 and transversely of the unit and can be fastened into position by means of screw 50 within threaded insert 50' Adjusting screws 51 and 52 engage threaded inserts 51 and 52 in block 47 and mount on their respective ends vertical post 53 having formed surface 53', the cross sectional configuration of which is seen in FIG. 4. Likewise, elongated adjusting block 49 supports screws 54 and 55 within threaded inserts 54' and 55', which screws in turn support vertical post 56 having a formed surface 56'. With this arrangement vertical posts 53 and 56 are movable transversely through adjustment in the manner of vertical posts 45 and 46 and are also movable toward and away from posts 45 and 46. Hence, as seen in FIG. 4, by means of the screws 51 and 52 the vertical post 53 is movable toward and away from the post 45 and by manipulation of screws 54 and 55 vertical post 56 is movable toward and away from vertical post 46. With such an arrangement various size soles can be accommodated adjacent the respective formed surfaces of the vertical posts 45, 46, 53 and 56, The transverse adjustments of the vertical posts provide for length of sole and the additional adjustment of vertical posts 53 and 56 provide for the width of the sole. These adjustments can also be utilized in providing for the stacking in the hopper of left or right soles so that the machine can accommodate either left or right soles. The soles are stacked in the hopper one above the other, as indicated in FIG. 6, and fed by gravity out the bottom of the hopper onto table 22 where the sole which has been fed is moved along the stationary table 22 by a feed pusher 23 which is moved by the chains 57a and 57b of chain conveyor 57 to which the pusher members 23 are attached at ends, as seen in FIG. 3.

In FIG. 3 the drive system of the machine is shown.

The system is driven by a single variable speed motor 58, the shaft 59 of which supports sprocket 60 driving chain 61, sprocket 62 and shaft 63. The shaft 63 is the drive shaft for conveyor 57 and mounts sprockets 64a and 6411 which drive chains 57a and 5712 respectively with shaft 65 supporting driven sprockets 66a and 6612 which support the remaining ends of chains 57a and 57b respectively. The pusher members 23 are spaced and supported outside of conveyor 57 for movement above stationary table 22.

Table 22 is centrally supported by center support 67 mounted on transverse beams 68 which are supported by main frame sides or channels 27 and 28, transverse support channels 69 and 70 and legs 71. The channels 27 and 28 support the shafts 63 and 65.

It is noted that clearance space is provided between the upper surface of stationary table 22 and the lowermost portion of hopper 20 so that the pusher members 23 can pass between the two and engage a sole 21 to move the sole 21 slidingly and longitudinally over the table 22 and from beneath the hopper 20. In each instance when this occurs a sole 21, which is then at the bottom of the stack of soles within hopper 20, is deposited upon the stationary table 22 and remains in position awaiting the next pusher member 23 which will move it from beneath the hopper slidingly over table 22.

As mentioned previously, the hopper is adjustably supported by the main frame sides 27 and 28 so that the hopper 20 can be raised or lowered in order to change the spacing between the upper surface of table 22 and the lowermost portion of the hopper 20 so that soles of diiferent widths can be accommodated by a simple adjustment.

Each of the hopper side supports 25 and 26, as seen in FIGS. 1 and 5, is attached to its respective main frame side 27 and 28 by screw and slot arrangements. Hence as seen in FIG. 1, a plurality of vertical slots 72 in hopper side support 26 receive screws 73 which pass therethrough for attachment to main frame side 27 and a plurality of vertical slots 74 are formed in the hopper side support 25 with screws 75 passing therethrough and attached to main frame side 28. Each side of the hopper is provided with means for vertically moving the hopper. Hence in FIG. 1 elongated block 76 is rigidly fastened to hopper side 26 by welding or other means and block 77 is rigidly fastened to main frame side 27 by welding or similar means and the screw 78 passes through an opening in block 77 and is received within a threaded insert in block 76 so that rotation of screw 78 will modify the spacing between blocks 77 and 76, hence raising or lowering side 26 of hopper 20. A like arrangement is provided at side 25 of the hopper wherein the elongated block attached to the side 25 is indicated by the numeral 79, the block attached to the main frame side 28 is indicated by the numeral 88, and the adjustment screw interconnecting the two is indicated by the numeral 81. This particular adjustment is a thickness adjustment as it provides for adjustment of the clearance between the upper surface of stationary table 22 and the lowermost portion of hopper 20.

The printing unit 24 is supported by side brackets 82 and 83 respectively fastened to sides 27 and 28 of the main frame, cross plate 84 and arms 85 and 86 cantilever mounted to cross plate 84 by screws 87. The printing unit is forward of the hopper 20 in the direction of travel of conveyor 57 so that a sole upon removal from the hopper by a pusher 23 is delivered by that pusher to the printing unit.

Side brackets 82 and 83 also support pivot shaft 88 which is rotated by shaft 65 through sprockets 89 and 90 and chain drive 91. Idler sprockets 92 and 93 are provided to take up the slack in chain 91 and each of these sprockets is mounted by a stub shaft 94 and 95 respectively to subplate 96 attached to side bracket 83.

Sprocket 97 is keyed to shaft 88 for rotation therewith and to drive ink roll 98, transfer roll 99 and print drum 100 through their respective shafts 101, 102 and 103, their respective sprockets 104, 105 and 106, and chain 107.

The shafts 101, 102 and 103 are supported by print assembly plates 108 and 109 which are connected as a unit by rod 110 attached to brackets 111 and 112 respectively attached to the print assembly plates. The rod 110 pivotally supports linking member 113 having a threaded insert 114 receiving the end of threaded shaft 115 pivotally supported by block 116 between arms 85 and 86. The connection of block 116 to the arms 85 and 86 is accomplished by means of two half shafts indicated generally by the numeral 117 in the figures, one half of which is supported by arm 85 and the other half of which is supported by arm 86. This type of support is necessary in view of the passing of shaft 115 through the block. With this arrangement the printing plates supporting the ink roll, transfer roll and printing drum can be pivoted about shaft 88 by rotation of handle 118 of shaft 115. This then enables the adjustment of pressure of print drum on sole 21 both for purposes of obtaining a clear and proper impression on the sole and for modification of the pressure when a sole group having different thickness is placed in the machine. Ink pan 119 is attached to plates 108 and 109 and supported beneath the ink roll and the transfer roll.

In use therefore, the soles which are to be imprinted upon are placed within hopper 20 in stacked relationship and posts 45, 46, 53 and 56 are adjusted in accordance with the size of the sole. The hopper is adjusted for the sole thickness by adjustment of screws 78 and 8-1 and the rinting unit is adjusted for sole thickness by rotation of handle 118. Ink is placed in inking pan 119 and the motor 58 is energized causing the pusher fiites 23 to move sequentially beneath the hopper 20 and in the space between the hopper and the upper surface of table 22. As each fiite or pusher 23 moves beneath the hopper it engages a sole 21 and moves the sole slideably over table 22 beneath printing drum 100 which is rotating and receiving impressions from transfer roll 99 through use of inking roll 98 in the usual manner in order to imprint indicia on the sole 21 beneath the drum. After printing and as part of the continuous operation of the device, the flite moves the sole to the end of the table 22 where it is removed by means not shown.

The automatic hopper feed eliminates slow manual handling and gives the printing unit a capacity of about 30,000 printed soles a day. The soles being mechanically fed, one at a time, from the adjustable upright hopper onto the chain conveyor provides positive feeding which makes possible perfect registration on each part.

The machine has few moving parts so that maintenance and downtime for repairs are kept to a minimum. Furthermore, the machine uses an interchangeable ribbed rubber type on the printing drum which can be snapped by finger pressure onto a ribbed rubber mat mounted on the print cylinder preventing the type from moving during printing. Removal is equally easy since the type can be withdrawn by finger pressure. Due to the fact that this type can be changed in minutes, the problem of slowdowns attributed to type changeovers have been eliminated.

For inking, the specially-cured rubber roll 8, continually turning in the self-contained ink trough 119, contacts the engraved steel metering roll 99 and transfers the ll'lk to it. The engraved roll applies the ink in exact, tonstant amounts to the rubber type on the print drum 1%. Since the ink is supplied in precise quantities, the impressions are clear and uniform on every part.

A counter 12% and counter readout device 121 can be utilized if desired to count the number of soles passing through the printing portion of the machine.

Thus among others, the several objects of the invention, as specifically aforenoted are achieved. Obviously, numerous changes and rearrangement of parts might be resorted to Without departing from the spirit of the invention as defined by the claim.

We claim: I

1. A printing device for sequentially imprinting indicia on the surface of items of various thicknesses and configurations including in combination a main frame, an elongated stationary table within said main frame, a hopper for storing items to be printed upon in stacked relation one upon the other above said table, first and second threaded insert means attached to said frame and said hopper casing respectively, threaded bolt means engaging said first and second insert means whereby rotation of said bolt means can adjust the spacing between said hopper and said stationary table to the height of one of said items, elongated vertically disposed blocks disposed within said hopper and adjustably movable in horizontal plane to define the periphery of said items in the horizontal plane, facing first and second print assembly plates pivotally supported by said main frame above said stationary table, a cylindrical printing drum rotatably supported by and between said print assembly plates above said stationary tabie, screw means attached to said print assembly plates and said main frame for pivotally adjusting the spacing of said printing drum to the height of one of said items, an endiess chain conveyor, a plurality of spaced transverse fiites of said conveyor, said conveyor being constructed and arranged to respectively pass said tlites between said hopper and said printing drum and said stationary table, a motor means, a first chain drive interconnecting said motor and said conveyor and a second chain drive interconnecting said motor and said printing drum for rotation thereof,

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 5/1936 Mumma 10140 X 10/1956 Willsea 101232 

